Skip to main content

News

Creating Healthier Communities Through Healthy Food Banks

South Carolina Department of Agriculture
Hugh E. Weathers, Commissioner

Media Contact: Stephanie Sox, 803-734-2196, ssox@scda.sc.gov 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – May 4, 2016

Creating Healthier Communities Through Healthy Food Banks

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Healthy Small Retail and Food Bank Collaborative (the Collaborative) is launching a healthy food bank program, Farm to Food Bank. The pilot program will focus on increasing the distribution of fresh, frozen or canned fruits and vegetable at food banks and food pantries in an effort to improve the health of South Carolinians.

Currently, Golden Harvest Food Bank, Harvest Hope Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina and eleven associated food pantries in Allendale, Bamberg, Florence, Richland, Spartanburg and Union Counties are participating. The Farm to Food Bank will eventually expand to include food pantries in Calhoun, Cherokee, Chester, Dillon, Fairfield, Kershaw, Lee, Marion and Orangeburg Counties.

As part of the Farm to Food Bank program, the SC Department of Agriculture and SC Department of Health and Environmental Control will be providing supplies, nutrition education materials and technical assistance to participating sites. This initiative is part of a larger grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded to DHEC to support the implementation of cross-cutting approaches to promote health and prevent and control chronic diseases and risk factors that are linked to obesity.

The Collaborative consists of members from Clemson University, GrowFood Carolina, Lowcountry Food Bank, SC Association of Convenience Stores, SC Community Loan Fund, SC Department of Agriculture, SC Department of Commerce, SC Department of Health and Environmental Control and SC Farm to Institution. For more information contact Emily Joyce at ejoyce@scda.gov.

###

Creating Healthy Communities through Healthy Food Banks Press Release

  • Posted in
  • Press Releases